BBQ'd Pizza, Quick Residence, San Diego

Yes, BBQ'ng a pizza

Heat up the grill, assembly the pie, slide it on, a couple minutes later we're eating!

Activities like this always start with a beer

Most of the critical items came from Trader Joe's, i.e., dough and sauce and some of the cheese, the rest is the grocery store round the corner.

We made two pies, one with wheat crust and the other regular.  If you've dabbled in making a pie at home and aren't familiar with Trader Joe's dough then I recommend a try.  It's just over a buck and tastes great and is easy to use.  Same comments on the sauce.  Both are huge time savers.

Here's the rest of the fixin's

A sprinkle of oregano is always a nice touch

We went for the wheat first

Ready for the grill

The plan was to crank up the temp as hot as it would go, slide in the pie, turn off the burners, see what happened.  Dennis rubbed.....olive oil on the grating as well, this would become important later...

600 degrees, in we go!

Grandma has as look from the backside..

OK, looks really good, smelled amazing.

We rotated the pie after a few minutes and the heat was dropping rapidly so we turned a few burners back on to continue the cooking, which ended up burning the underside of half the pie.  

It still tasted great.

YUMMMMMMM!!!!!!

 On to the next one.  We used the standard dough and we decided to put the raw sausage on the very top, we weren't entirely sure that the sausage had cooked the first time around.....We're both still alive so it ended up being a safe gamble.

And, in true DVA fashion, I forgot to take an after shot of this one... UGHH!!!!!!!

but at least we had another beer, or 10.

What we learned from this pie, and there's a lesson to be learned from every pie you eat, is that coating the grating with oil stops stuff from sticking, amazing thought!  So yeah, half the pie stuck as I was turning it, and it still might be on the grill, knowing Dennis....  Ehhh, we'll clean it when we use it next.

Get ur grill out, oil it up, slide on a pie.  It's summer, enjoy.

Grill more pie

DVA

Dinner in Tokyo

I am somewhere in Tokyo.   

A huge city, gazilions of people, endless streets zigzagging to nowhere and everywhere at the same time, countless restaurants, choices that are to many to list.  A taxi, the subway, we walk, turning left then right then right again, over and over and over, meandering through the crowds, passing door after door, finally ending here.  A few Japanese characters painted on the wall, the door opens, down we go.  

A very simple setting, an old couple hard at work.  She is the server, he is the cook.  Half way through the meal a post-teen shows up to help with the dining room, which contains only about 6 tables.  The decor is stark, the focus is not the ambiance, other than the jazz music playing very loudly in the kitchen, which is open to the dining room.  This place is all about preparing and serving great food.

A wonderful meal, awesome drinks, great company.

Enjoy

We must always start with beer.  This I like

This was very similar in flavor to pickled herring, but obviously more refind and super delicious

Potato salad.  I was kind of like "WTF???"  Really?  Potato Salad? Until I tasted it.  Soo good.

The menu is created fresh every day.  Hand written.  Creative and delicious.

Shochu

A Japanese distilled alcohol.  I was drinking it on the rocks.   Others mixed about half and half water.  We killed 3 bottles I think, and not small bottles either.  I liked this stuff!!*#&#!!!!!!!

Yeah, we had fun

Sashimi

Tuna belly, red snapper, squid, giant clam (I think)

Looks like Wagu beef

Freshly grated wasabi

Sea Urchin

A shit ton of it

Creamy and delicious

Some sort of stir fry.  Scallops, shrimp, mushrooms, asparagus, garlic cloves, etc...

This was my favorite dish of the night.

Salmon

I think THIS was my favorite actually!

Uhmmm, yeah, THISSSSSSSSS  was totally my favorite!  So tender and flavorful.  Not sure if I've had a better, more perfectly cooked, aweome tasting piece of cow ever.   Terrific!

The silver and greyish one is Mackerel, the brownish is a type of Sea Eel

Both were great

A really good trip, a really great meal.

Peace out from Tokyo

DVA

Tribute Pizza, San Diego, Father's Day 2013

I'm quite a tardy man with the scribing of this post.  Alas, I am a busy one these days.

But tardy as it might be, it is now upon us.  

Read it for sure, enjoy it I hope

http://www.tributepizza.com/

I really am having a tough time figuring out where to start this one.  The day was amazing, the surprise was awesome, the pizza was more than delicious.  I guess we'll start there.

Father's Day, 2013

My daughters son in-law came over to spend some time with me in the afternoon and share a meal.  I was told none of the details, not that it was presented as a surprise, I was just told not to ask, that everything was taken care of, chill, enjoy the company, food would happen when it happened.  So we chatted, opened cards, and I was getting hungry, ready to eat.

The next thing I know a dude rolled to the door of my apartment with 3 pizza boxes and a big smile

You've probably already picked up on two things.  

One, this guy kicks ass.  

Two, these photos are going to suck.

I simply wasn't prepared, didn't know that this was going to go down.  I grabbed my phone and shot what I could, and I missed a lot.  So enjoy this half-assed post and try to glean what you can from it, knowing that this was some of the best pizza I have ever eaten, anywhere, anyhow.

Tribute Pizza

it isn't the greatest and best pizza in the world, just a Tribute

Already this is great.  Jack Black quote????  Hell to the yes!

This guy, I think his name is Matthew, but I'm not sure, loves pizza.  Everything about pizza. There is no restaurant, no way to go and enjoy it when you want.  He performs "pop-up" events and you can also order through his website, but not at the moment you want the pie.  This is special event pizza, planning ahead pizza, days in advance, from what I gather.  All I know is the dude rolled in with pizzas he made in a commercial kitchen in North Park and finished them in my kitchen.  They were already cooked, he just finished them with olive oil, parmesan cheese, etc., whatever.  

Now, sit back and enjoy the terribly blurry photos and no explanation of the toppings

Lame, I know, what can I say?

Three pies.  From near to far, a margherita type, then an arugula and white type, then a hard salami thicker rectangle type,
(this one was the favorite.  All were super delicious, this one was just a bit more wowzer)

awkward photo, sorry dude

And then, like a ninja, he was gone

I MISS YOU (and your pie) PIZZA DUDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!  COME BACK SOON!!!!!!

I love this guy, his deal, his pizza.  I want to eat it every day.  The crust was sent from heaven.  A pure work of art.  Soft on the inside and perfectly crisp on the outside, and not too much of either.  Simply perfect.  A master craftsman.  

If you'd like to enjoy the best pizza availabe anywhere in the world, and it's right here in San Diego!!!!!!  then check out the website and EAT THIS PIE!!!!!!!

My crew, they are awesome too.  Thanks guys, a great day for sure

A very happy Father's Day 2013

P.S.  A big hi to Casey and Lauren too!  You guys are awesome and we all miss you here in San Diego.  Come out soon!!!!!!!!

Lots of love to everyone

Dad out

GO EAT SOME PIE!

Japanese Toilet fun

Hello there folks

This is not pie related nor mouth related

The purpose of this post is to bring you the joys of the automated toilet

I am not referring to a simple bidet.  This is a fully automated, adjustable toilet for all of mankind, to clean yourself after doing some serious, or an attempted serious, amount of work, privately.

I filmed this in my hotel room in Tokyo

I love this so much that I even sit down to pee.  It's like a taking a mini bath, minor clean up on aisle two, a spritzer on a busy day to keep you going, a refreshing mountain breeze.

Click the link, sit back, enjoy.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MqSjmsBG-sk&feature=youtu.be

DVA